Last-ditch talks bid to salvage pay deal

LAST-DITCH talks were due to continue today in an attempt to salvage fading hopes of a new national wage agreement.

Prospects for agreement improved slightly last night after unions and employers agreed to attempt further negotiations, but the two sides also warned the gap between their positions remained extremely wide.

The groups met separately in Government Buildings for four hours from mid-afternoon yesterday where the secretary general at the Department of the Taoiseach, Dermot McCarthy, and his officials acted as intermediaries.

Face-to-face talks have not yet taken place, but with the Taoiseach due to return from holidays tomorrow, it is believed senior representatives from both sides may get around the table before the day is out.

The crunch talks began as the latest live register figures revealed more sombre details about the state of the economy. Statistics for last month show the numbers signing on at 166,142 an increase of 13,700, or 9%, on the same time in 2001.

Seasonally adjusted, the total is lower at 164,700, but this still represents an increase of 8% on 12 months earlier.

Even with warnings abounding that the economy needs to be handled with care, the two sides in the pay dispute arrived for talks an hour apart in sombre mood and indicating the outlook for progress was no better than when talks broke down three weeks ago.

Turlough O'Sullivan, director of the employers body IBEC, said he was 'not optimistic', warning the unions' demands were unrealistic.

"Whether we have a national agreement or not you will have significantly more firms having to plead inability to pay or looking for pay pauses," he said.

Last night's "talks about talks" were convened at the Taoiseach's urging to see if enough common ground could be found to provide a basis for detailed pay negotiations. Among the preliminary matters that could ease the two sides back into full discussions is the issue of union recognition, with indications that the employers side may be willing to soften its attitude.

The union side is also seeking assurances on compliance with any pay agreement reached, amid fears that companies will sign up but attempt to pull out later.

Crucially, both sides need to come within a handshake's distance on the size of any pay increase. This is the biggest sticking point, although it is believed any deal could be limited to 12 months, unlike its predecessor which spanned almost two years, to allow both sides review their positions sooner.